Springfield and its environs have long been a heavy metal haven, thanks to clubs like the Fat Cat and the now-defunct Infinity, and bands like All That Remains, The Acacia Strain, Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall and the multi-platinum-selling Staind. Promoters like Scott “Ogre” Lee have played a large part in the scene as well, booking and/or owning clubs, managing bands and organizing the now decade-plus-old New England Metal and Hardcore Festival at Worcester’s Palladium.
Now there’s a whole new generation of Western Mass. metal that seems to be ascending the ranks, with bands like Springfield’s Western Massacre, Northampton’s Black Pyramid and Greenfield’s recently signed Promize. Poking its head up from the mosh pit to take Best Metal Band in the Advocate‘s 2011 Grand Band Slam is Springfield’s The Black Heart Epidemic, a self-described almalgam of longtime friends who “always knew they’d do something together.”
The current five-member roster of The Black Heart Epidemic emerged after several different versions of the band had come and gone. Today’s BHE includes Moses Whitlock, the former singer of Medicated Savage (a previous GBS winner); bassist/vocalist Nicolas Zalowski, formerly of The Aeon Saga and Collapse into Reason; drummer Justin Camp (also an Aeon Saga alumnus); Pawel Watracz, former guitarist for the band Sever the Skies, and classical cellist Sarah Hinchliffe, who occasionally lent her talents to local Nirvana tribute band Negative Creep. The Advocate was able to nail them down for a Q&A session in early September just before their Pearl Street show with Western Massacre.
Valley Advocate: What do you love best about music, and metal music in particular?
Justin Camp: I love how metal—to me—is a celebration of energy and how the music makes me feel, but mostly I love how metal, and music in general, brings people together and, in a lot of cases, establishes a community, interaction, and comradeship between people.
Sarah Hinchliffe: Music is inspirational; it has the ability to change moods. I love metal music for its ability to motivate. I always listen to it when I’m working out as it’s great for motivation.
Have you found Springfield to be a supportive place to try to launch a professional musical career?
The Springfield music scene has had its ups and downs in the last 15 years, but Black Heart has found a tremendous amount of love and support from the Springfield area, which we are eternally grateful for.
Nicholas Zalowski: I love Springfield and Springfield loves me.
Do you have any plans to tour or play more shows outside the region?
We have already been playing in the northern Connecticut and Worcester areas, and we’re currently trying to get out to Boston, New York State and City, Vermont and New Hampshire.
Have you been offered any opportunities to open for other, more established bands in the area?
Well, we’re only one year old, so just about everyone we play with is more established. We have had the opportunities to play with signed artists such as Dead By Wednesday and Q.
Do you have a full-length album? Do you have any current plans for further recording?
We currently only have a two-song demo which can be found on our Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/TheBlackHeartEpidemic) and our Reverbnation page (http://www.reverbnation.com/theblackheartepidemic). We have no plans currently to record or release a full-length album, but we have tentative plans to release one or two more two-song EPs.
How does the cello fit into such thick, chunky metal music?
Nicholas Zalowski: Rather nicely if you ask me.
Justin Camp: I think what we’ve managed to do thus far is to both provide sweeping melodies for breakdowns and add euphoric undertones to various parts of the music. The cello adds quite a bit of bass and low support, but it takes a lead role, piercing through the chunky heavy sounds quite well, and establishes lead melody very nicely. We’ve grown quite a bit of late and have our first song that’s incredibly cello-centric (“The Gift”), which currently you can only hear live. We believe it to be one of the best songs yet, and we’re continually growing as songwriters and musicians, so who knows what the future will bring?
Sarah Hinchliffe: Metal music is surprisingly similar to classical music, with its layering of instruments and complementary melodies. Here the cello provides everything from a haunting dark feeling to a driving force moving the music along.
How about videos?
We recently completed shooting for a video of “The Kiss,” which is currently in the editing stage and should be released soon. We have intentions to shoot a video for “Homecoming” but have no schedule or concrete plans yet.
Is there any particular message you’re trying to put across through your music?
Justin Camp: I’m a drummer. Me bashum with sticks.
Sarah Hinchliffe: I really don’t feel that our music is trying to send a message as much as it is trying to share a feeling. We all put every ounce of our energy into our music, and want to share that with our fans.
Nicholas Zalowski: I think there’s an underlying theme to everything that we do, but the actual subject matter varies from song to song.
Who are your biggest influences, in music and in life?
Justin Camp: Music is so difficult to say; it usually turns into a huge list of bands. Fear Factory, Slipknot, Rage Against the Machine, Marilyn Manson, Metallica, Pantera—the list goes on and on. In life, I suppose the biggest influences come from my friends, in general.
Sarah Hinchliffe: Musically: Jacqueline Dupre, Mike Patton, Tool, Fiona Apple, NIN. Most classical music, although my favorite is Vivaldi. In life: My fiance Chris and my daughter Eleanor.
Nicholas Zalowski: Musically? Skinny Puppy, Tricky, Whitechapel, NIN, Harry Chapin, Wu Tang, Heltah Skeltah, Journey, Michel Jackson, Meshuggah… In life? My family, particularly my big brother, Ant. He kind of taught me about music. My band, my sponsor, my mom.
Pawel Watracz: In music… Metallica, Pantera, Alice in Chains, Deftones, A Perfect Circle, Johny Cash, Frank Sinatra, George Clinton, the Beatles… I could go on and on. All music really can be an influence. My family, of course.
What do you guys do when you’re not out fighting crime in your heavy metal rocker costumes?
Justin Camp: Most of us lead very busy lives. I am a professional computer programmer and full-time college student. When I have that rare spurt of down time, you can catch me either playing video games or down at my local watering hole celebrating life via alcohol.
Sarah Hinchliffe: I work as a paralegal and attend college with hopes of someday becoming a criminal prosecutor. I am also the mother of a beautiful 11-year-old daughter and am engaged to be married in 2012.
Pawel Watracz: Outside of the band I hang with my awesome wife, fish, play video games, and make a living working for an exporting company.
Do you ever use any props in your stage show?
We’re pretty light on props, but we do other things to make the theatrical aspect of our performance more engaging. Moe wears contact lenses of awesomeness, and Sarah always dresses beautifully.
Aside from that, we gauge each show and try to come up with something unique that makes it special. For example, for the Metalympics semifinals, we all dressed in dark suits and had a shot girl bring us shots in the middle of a song to match the theme of the event. For the Finals of Metalympics we have some really cool stuff planned.
Have you placed anything in, like, war video games or extreme snowboarding TV shows yet?
Not yet. Why? Do you know anyone that could hook us up with that?
If there was one musical goal you could achieve in the next year, what would it be?
I think everyone in the band agrees our primary goal is to be able to play music professionally. That would mean getting signed. If we can’t get signed in the next year, then our always-existing goal is to grow our fan base as large as possible and entertain people with our music.
Moses Whitlock: Our goal for the next year is to continue to prove metal can still be art.
If you could wake up tomorrow and be anywhere, where would you be?
Justin Camp: New York City. I lived there for over five years, and it’s still my favorite place to be.
Sarah Hinchliffe: On a beach somewhere working on my tan.
Nicholas Zalowski: Wherever my band is.
Pawel Watracz: My dream ever since I started playing music has been to someday go back and play a show in Poland. So if I could wake up and be anywhere I would be on stage with my brothers and sister in front of thousands of my Polish brothers and sisters.
